Sarah Weiskopf is a Biologist with the National Climate Adaptation Science Center. Her research focuses on the impacts of climate change on terrestrial wildlife.
Sarah received her M.S. in wildlife ecology from the University of Delaware in 2016 and a B.S. in wildlife conservation and a B.A. in biology from the University of Delaware in 2014. Her previous research has included quantifying snow leopard dietary habits in the Central Asian steppe and using camera trapping and a novel method -- DNA extraction from terrestrial leech blood meals -- to study biodiversity and habitat fragmentation in Asian tropical rainforests. Sarah joined the USGS in 2016 as a Presidential Management Fellow, where she has served as a chapter lead on the Ecosystems, Biodiversity, and Ecosystems Services chapter of the Fourth National Climate Assessment and as a U.S. Delegate to the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. During her fellowship, she also spent several months working on international biodiversity issues at the Department of State Office of Conservation and Water.
Education and Certifications
M.S. in Wildlife Ecology, University of Delaware
B.S. in Wildlife Conservation, University of Delaware
B.A. in Biology, University of Delaware
Science and Products
A Climate Risk Management Screening and Assessment Review for Madagascar’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy
Understanding Changing Climate Variables to Clarify Species’ Exposure and Responses to Changing Environments across North America
The Missing Link: Incorporating the Role of Biological Diversity into Projections of Ecosystem Services
Understanding the Effects of Climate Variability and Change on Ungulates in North America
Understanding Species' Range Shifts in Response to Climate Change: Results from a Systematic National Review
A Synthesis of Recent Links Between Climate Change and Ecosystem Services Supply and Demand
Workshops and Collaborations to Improve Biodiversity and Climate Modeling
Climate change and the global redistribution of biodiversity: Substantial variation in empirical support for expected range shifts
A conceptual framework to integrate biodiversity, ecosystem function, and ecosystem service models
Winter severity affects occupancy of spring- and summer-breeding anurans across the eastern United States
Expert perspectives on global biodiversity loss and its drivers and impacts on people
Increasing the uptake of ecological model results in policy decisions to improve biodiversity outcomes
Climate change risks and adaptation options for Madagascar
A new approach to evaluate and reduce uncertainty of model-based biodiversity projections for conservation policy formulation
A climate risk management screening and assessment review for Madagascar’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy
Multilocus metabarcoding of terrestrial leech bloodmeal iDNA increases species richness uncovered in surveys of vertebrate host biodiversity
What are the effects of climate variability and change on ungulate life-histories, population dynamics, and migration in western North America? A systematic map protocol
Using information from global climate models to inform policymaking—The role of the U.S. Geological Survey
Do empirical observations support commonly-held climate change range shift hypotheses? A systematic review protocol
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
- Science
A Climate Risk Management Screening and Assessment Review for Madagascar’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy
Madagascar, a country rich in natural capital and biodiversity but with high levels of poverty, food insecurity, and population growth, faces a number of development challenges, including obtaining sustained financial support from external sources and building internal capacity to address the poor environmental, health, and socio-economic conditions. Climate change poses an increasing threat to acUnderstanding Changing Climate Variables to Clarify Species’ Exposure and Responses to Changing Environments across North America
Species across North America are being impacted by changing climate conditions. Plants and animals can respond to these changes in a variety of ways, including by shifting their geographic distributions. Determining whether or not observed biological changes, such as range shifts, are indeed the result of climate change is a key challenge facing natural resource managers and requires clarifying whThe Missing Link: Incorporating the Role of Biological Diversity into Projections of Ecosystem Services
Modeling interactions between human and ecological systems is needed to identify pathways to meet multiple United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Particularly important is the relationship between biodiversity, ecological processes, and ecosystem services. However, current models tend to ignore impacts of biodiversity on ecological processes. Existing models capture impacts of socio-economiUnderstanding the Effects of Climate Variability and Change on Ungulates in North America
Ungulates, or hoofed mammals such as elk, deer, and moose, occupy a diversity of habitats across North America, from Canada’s high arctic to the deserts of Mexico. Ungulates play an important ecological role, helping to regulate processes such as nutrient cycling in forests and grasslands, through their grazing activities. They are also economically and culturally important, providing recreational...Understanding Species' Range Shifts in Response to Climate Change: Results from a Systematic National Review
Climate change represents one of the foremost drivers of ecological change, yet its documented impacts on biodiversity remain uncertain and complex. Although there have been many published studies on species shifting their geographic ranges in response to climate change, it is still challenging to identify the specific mechanisms and conditions that facilitate range shifts in some species and notA Synthesis of Recent Links Between Climate Change and Ecosystem Services Supply and Demand
Climate change is already affecting and will continue to impact the supply and demand of ecosystem goods and serivces (EGS) that are important for human well-being. Therefore, it is important to monitor trends and identify gaps in how climate change is incorporated into the assessment and management of these services. Systematic literature reviews play an important role in this process. For examplWorkshops and Collaborations to Improve Biodiversity and Climate Modeling
As our world changes and communities are faced with uncertain future climate conditions, decision making and resource planning efforts can often no longer rely on historic scientific data alone. Scientific projections of what might be expected in the future are increasingly needed across the country and around the world. Scientists and researchers can develop these projections by using computer mo - Publications
Filter Total Items: 16
Climate change and the global redistribution of biodiversity: Substantial variation in empirical support for expected range shifts
BackgroundAmong the most widely predicted climate change-related impacts to biodiversity are geographic range shifts, whereby species shift their spatial distribution to track their climate niches. A series of commonly articulated hypotheses have emerged in the scientific literature suggesting species are expected to shift their distributions to higher latitudes, greater elevations, and deeper depAuthorsMadeleine A. Rubenstein, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Romain Bertrand, Shawn Carter, Lise Comte, Mitchell Eaton, Ciara G. Johnson, Jonathan Lenoir, Abigail Lynch, Brian W. Miller, Toni Lyn Morelli, Mari Angel Rodriguez, Adam Terando, Laura ThompsonA conceptual framework to integrate biodiversity, ecosystem function, and ecosystem service models
Global biodiversity and ecosystem service models typically operate independently. Ecosystem service projections thus may be overly optimistic because they do not account for the role of biodiversity in maintaining ecological functions underpinning their provision. We review models used in recent global model intercomparison projects and develop a novel model integration framework to more fully accAuthorsSarah R. Weiskopf, Bonnie J.E. Myers, Maria Isabel Arce-Plata, Julia L. Blanchard, Simon Ferrier, Elizabeth A. Fulton, Mike Harfoot, Forest Isbell, Justin A. Johnson, Akira S. Mori, Ensheng Weng, Zuzana Harmáčková, Maria Cecilia Londoño-Murcia, Brian W. Miller, Laura Pereira, Isabel M.D. RosaWinter severity affects occupancy of spring- and summer-breeding anurans across the eastern United States
AimClimate change is an increasingly important driver of biodiversity loss. The ectothermic nature of amphibians may make them particularly sensitive to changes in temperature and precipitation regimes, adding to declines from other threats. While active season environmental conditions can influence growth and survival, effects of variation in winter conditions on population dynamics are less wellAuthorsSarah R. Weiskopf, Alexey N. Shiklomanov, Laura Thompson, Sarah Wheedleton, Evan H. Campbell GrantExpert perspectives on global biodiversity loss and its drivers and impacts on people
Despite substantial progress in understanding global biodiversity loss, major taxonomic and geographic knowledge gaps remain. Decision makers often rely on expert judgement to fill knowledge gaps, but are rarely able to engage with sufficiently large and diverse groups of specialists. To improve understanding of the perspectives of thousands of biodiversity experts worldwide, we conducted a surveyAuthorsForest Isbell, Patricia Balvanera, Akira S. Mori, Jin-Sheng He, James M. Bullock, Ganga Ram Regmi, Eric W. Seabloom, Simon Ferrier, Osvaldo E. Sala, Nathaly R. Guerrero-Ramírez, Julia Tavella, Daniel J. Larkin, Bernhard Schmid, Charlotte L. Outhwaite, Pairot Pramua, Elizabeth T. Borer, Michel Loreau, Taiwo Crossby Omotoriogun, David O. Obura, Maggie Anderson, Cristina Portales-Reyes, Kevin Kirkman, Pablo M Vergara, Adam Thomas Clark, Kimberly J Komatsu, Owen L. Petchey, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Laura J. Williams, Scott L. Collins, Nico Eisenhauer, Christopher H Trisos, Delphine Renard, Alexandra J. Wright, Poonam Tripathi, Jane Cowles, Jarrett E. K. Byrnes, Peter B. Reich, Andy Purvis, Zati Sharip, Mary I. O'Connor, Clare E. Kazanski, Nick M. Haddad, Eulogio H. Soto, Laura E. Dee, Sandra Díaz, Chad R. Zirbel, Meghan L. Avolio, Shaopeng Wang, Zhiyuan Ma, Jingjing Liang, Hanan C. Farah, Justin Andrew Johnson, Brian W. Miller, Yann Hautier, Melinda D. Smith, Johannes M. H. Knops, Bonnie Myers, Zuzana Harmáčková, Jorge Cortés, Mike Harfoot, Andrew Gonzalez, Tim Newbold, Jacqueline Oehri, Marina Mazón, Cynnamon Dobbs, Meredith S. PalmerIncreasing the uptake of ecological model results in policy decisions to improve biodiversity outcomes
Models help decision-makers anticipate the consequences of policies for ecosystems and people; for instance, improving our ability to represent interactions between human activities and ecological systems is essential to identify pathways to meet the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. However, use of modeling outputs in decision-making remains uncommon. We share insights from a multidisciplinaryAuthorsSarah R. Weiskopf, Zuzana Harmáčková, Ciara G. Johnson, Maria Cecilia Londoño-Murcia, Brian W. Miller, Bonnie J.E. Myers, Laura Pereira, Maria Isabel Arce-Plata, Julia L. Blanchard, Simon Ferrier, Elizabeth A. Fulton, Mike Harfoot, Forest Isbell, Justin A. Johnson, Akira S. Mori, Ensheng Weng, Isabel M.D. RosaClimate change risks and adaptation options for Madagascar
Climate change poses an increasing threat to achieving development goals and is often considered in development plans and project designs. However, there have been challenges in the effective implementation of those plans, particularly in the sustained engagement of the communities to undertake adaptive actions, but also due to insufficient scientific information to inform management decisions. MaAuthorsSarah R. Weiskopf, Janet Alice Cushing, Toni Lyn Morelli, Bonnie MyersA new approach to evaluate and reduce uncertainty of model-based biodiversity projections for conservation policy formulation
Biodiversity projections with uncertainty estimates under different climate, land-use, and policy scenarios are essential to setting and achieving international targets to mitigate biodiversity loss. Evaluating and improving biodiversity predictions to better inform policy decisions remains a central conservation goal and challenge. A comprehensive strategy to evaluate and reduce uncertainty of moAuthorsBonnie Myers, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Alexey N. Shiklomanov, Simon Ferrier, Ensheng Weng, Kimberly Ann Casey, Michael Harfoot, Stephen Jackson, Allison K. Leidner, Timothy M. Lenton, Gordon Luikart, Hiroyuki Matsuda, Nathalie Pettorelli, Isabel M. D. Rosa, Alexander C. Ruane, Gabriel B. Senay, Shawn P. Serbin, Derek P. Tittensor, T. Douglas BeardA climate risk management screening and assessment review for Madagascar’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy
Madagascar, a country rich in natural capital and biodiversity but with high levels of poverty, food insecurity, and population growth, faces a number of development challenges, including obtaining sustained financial support from external sources and building internal capacity to address the poor environmental, health, and socio-economic conditions. Climate change poses an increasing threat to acAuthorsJanet Alice Cushing, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Toni Lyn Morelli, Bonnie MyersMultilocus metabarcoding of terrestrial leech bloodmeal iDNA increases species richness uncovered in surveys of vertebrate host biodiversity
Leech-derived invertebrate DNA (iDNA) has been successfully leveraged to conduct surveys of vertebrate host biodiversity across the Indo Pacific. However, this technique has been limited methodologically, typically only targeting mammalian 16S rDNA, or both 16S and vertebrate 12S rDNA for leech host determination. To improve the taxonomic richness of vertebrate host species in iDNA surveys, we re-AuthorsMai Fahmy, Kalani Williams, Michael Tessler, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Evon Hekkala, Mark E. SiddallWhat are the effects of climate variability and change on ungulate life-histories, population dynamics, and migration in western North America? A systematic map protocol
Climate is an important driver of ungulate life-histories, population dynamics, and migratory behaviors, and can affect the growth, development, fecundity, dispersal, and demographic trends of populations. Changes in temperature and precipitation, and resulting shifts in plant phenology, winter severity, drought and wildfire conditions, invasive species distribution and abundance, predation, and dAuthorsKate Malpeli, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Laura Thompson, Amanda R. HardyUsing information from global climate models to inform policymaking—The role of the U.S. Geological Survey
This report provides an overview of model-based climate science in a risk management context. In addition, it summarizes how the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) will continue to follow best scientific practices and when and how the results of this research will be delivered to the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) and other stakeholders to inform policymaking. Climate change is a risk managementAuthorsAdam Terando, David Reidmiller, Steven W. Hostetler, Jeremy S. Littell, T. Douglas Beard, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Jayne Belnap, Geoffrey S. PlumleeDo empirical observations support commonly-held climate change range shift hypotheses? A systematic review protocol
Background Among the most widely anticipated climate-related impacts to biodiversity are geographic range shifts, whereby species shift their spatial distribution in response to changing climate conditions. In particular, a series of commonly articulated hypotheses have emerged: species are expected to shift their distributions to higher latitudes, greater elevations, and deeper depths in responAuthorsMadeleine A. Rubenstein, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Shawn Carter, Mitchell Eaton, Ciara Johnson, Abigail Lynch, Brian W. Miller, Toni Lyn Morelli, Mari Angel Rodriguez, Adam Terando, Laura ThompsonNon-USGS Publications**
Weiskopf, S.R., McCarthy, J.L., McCarthy, K.P., Shiklomanov, A.N., Wibisono, H.T., Pusparini, W. 2019. The conservation value of forest fragments in the increasingly agrarian landscape of Sumatra. Environmental Conservation. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0376892919000195Weiskopf, S.R., McCarthy, K. P., Tessler, M., Rahman, H., McCarthy, J.L., Faisal, M.M., Siddall, M.E. 2018. Using terrestrial haematophagous leeches to enhance tropical biodiversity monitoring programs in Bangladesh. Journal of Applied Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.13111Tessler, M., Weiskopf, S.R., Berniker, L., Hersch, R., McCarthy, K.P., Yu, D. W., Siddall, M.E. 2018. Bloodlines: mammals, leeches, and conservation in southern Asia. Systematics and Biodiversity. https://doi.org/10.1080/14772000.2018.1433729Weiskopf, S.R., Kachel, S.M., McCarthy, K.P. 2016. What are snow leopards really eating? Identifying bias in food habit studies. The Wildlife Society Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.640**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
- News